Music: Best Albums of the Year Series: 1969 (the nicest year)

[Saturated Fats]

1967: The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
1980: AC/DC - Back in Black
1994: Nirvana - MTV Unplugged in New York
2000: Radiohead - Kid A
1973: Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
1988: Metallica - ...And Justice for All

2004: (TIE) Madvillain - Madvillainy // The Killers - Hot Fuss // Green Day - American Idiot (9 votes)

4th Place: Arcade Fire - Funeral (8 votes)
5th Place (tie): Kanye West - The College Dropout (7 votes)
5th Place (tie): Modest Mouse - Good News for People Who Love Bad News

Other received 17 votes, with no common consensus.

An extremely close 2004 vote, but at the moment it was closed, we had a three way tie. Really interesting three choices, too - an underground rap sensation, a pop punk opera, and a canonical indie rock classic.

1969 oughta be fun, as it was an absolutely TITANIC year in music. I group acts with multiple releases into one vote, with the exception of Led Zeppelin. Because it's Led Zeppelin. But I absolutely had to exclude some outstanding releases. Them's the breaks. Prominent exclusions include The Doors - The Soft Parade; Isaac Hayes - Hot Buttered Soul; Grand Funk Railroad - S/T; Jethro Tull - Stand Up; The Flying Burrito Brothers - The Gilded Palace of Sin; The Moody Blues - Two different releases; Blind Faith - S/T; Can - Monster Movie; Fairport Convention - Two different releases; Johnny Cash - At San Quentin; Scott Walker - Two different releases. I'm sorry, take it up with management.

The next year we will do is 1991.

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[Saturated Fats]

For me, it goes:

Joni Mitchell - Clouds
The Band - The Band
The Beatles - Abbey Road
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King
Led Zeppelin I
CCR - Bayou Country
The Stooges - The Stooges
The Kinks - Arthur or the Decline and Fall...
Led Zeppelin II
Terry Riley - A Rainbow in Curved Air

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

To make room for more albums, I put the Zappa and Beatles albums together (anyway they're pretty much where they would stand in the ranking) - and still had to go to 20.

1. The Beatles - Abbey Road / The Beatles - Yellow Submarine
2. Sonny Sharrock - Black Woman
-
3. Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention - Uncle Meat / Frank Zappa - Hot Rats (Mothermania was a lesser album, still worth mentioning)
4. Alice Cooper - Pretties For You (this album sounds like trash, Zappa's non-production is atrocious and it has no right being so high in a year so full of masterpieces and you'd be right to hate it... or it's just the most perfect piece of trash ever: No Longer Umpire (on other recordings titled Painting A Picture) remains one of my favorite songs ever)
5. Serge Gainsbourg - Jane Birkin/Serge Gainsbourg
-
6. The Stooges - The Stooges
7. The White Noise - An Electric Storm
8. The Kinks - Arthur or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire
9. Cromagnon - Orgasm
10. Captain Beefheart - Trout Mask Replica
-
11. Howlin' Wolf - The Howlin' Wolf Album
12. Joe Byrd and the Field Hippies - The American Metaphysical Circus
13. Harry Nilsson - Harry
14. Otis Redding - Love Man
15. Art Ensemble of Chicago - People in Sorrow
16. Don Cherry - Eternal Rythm
17. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II
18. Miles Davis - In A Silent Way
19. Le Quatuor de jazz libre du Québec - Le jazz libre du Québec
20. Kenny Rogers & The First Edition - Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town

And couldn't make room for very good albums by The Turtles, Three Dog Night, Leonard Cohen, Bob Seger System... Very special year.

Edit: Crap, forgot Joseph - Stoned Age Man. I guess it takes The First Edition out of the top-20.

 

[Teemu]

The Beatles – Abbey Road
Flying Burrito Brothers – The Gilded Palace of Sin
Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
The Band – The Band
Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin II
Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin
The Who – Tommy
Crosby, Stills & Nash – Crosby, Stills & Nash
Creedence Clearwater Revival – Willie & the Poor Boys
Alexander Spence - Oar

But plenty of others could make the list. This is the first year I actually had to make cuts.

 

[YoSoyLalo]

I voted for nick drake lol

Abbey road is my least favorite of the big Beatles albums, but at least it has Maxwells Silver Hammer and Octopus Garden

 

[Mikeaveli]

1. Sun Ra - Atlantis
2. Frank Zappa - Hot Rats
3. The Beatles - Abbey Road
4. Miles Davis - In a Silent Way
5. The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground
6. King Crimson - In The Court of the Crimson King
7. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin
8. CAN - Monster Movie

Trout Mask Replica has some amazing songs on it but I will never be able to listen to the whole thing in one sitting.

 

[Saturated Fats]

Welp, I declared the 2004 poll over one hour before it was actually closed. Another vote for American Idiot gets in under the wire, meaning that it's looking like a tie.

 

[Oxbow Lakes]

Miles Davis - In a Silent Way
The Beatles - Abbey Road
CCR - Willy and the Poor Boys
The Velvet Undeground
CCR - Green River
MC5 - Kick Out the Jams
The Stooges
Amon Düül II - Phallus Dei

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

Forgot....
HM to John Mayall's The Turning Point, great live album.

 

[Hockey Outsider]

I'm curious, why were "In a Silent Way" and "Filles de Kilimanjaro" combined? (My vote is really for the former, not the latter).

My "other" choice is Jethro Tull's "Stand Up".

 

[kook10]

no order

(a baker's ten)

Led Zeppelin - II
The Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed
Bob Dylan - Nashville Skyline
The Beatles - Abbey Road
The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground
The Who - Tommy
Flying Burrito Brothers - Gilded Palace Of Sin
Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Blind Faith - Blind Faith
Isaac Hayes - Hot Buttered Soul
Fairport Convention - Liege & Lief

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Neil Young: Everyone Knows This is Nowhere
The Band: The Band
Beatles: Abbey Road
The Who: Tommy
Dusty Springfield: Dusty in Memphis
Sly and the Family Stone: Stand
The Velvet Underground
Rolling Stones: Let it Bleed
CCR: Willie and The Poor Boys (How do you release 3 albums in one year!)
Nick Drake: Five Leaves Left

 

[Saturated Fats]

I'm curious, why were "In a Silent Way" and "Filles de Kilimanjaro" combined? (My vote is really for the former, not the latter).

My "other" choice is Jethro Tull's "Stand Up".

Fair question. In a Silent Way is the FAR more recognizable and celebrated work, in my opinion (and most opinions, I would think). But I didn't want to excludes Filles... lest someone (as has been the case in other threads) come along and say that they thought it was the superior Davis album. So I split the difference and just decided to include it as two. The reason that I didn't give it the Zeppelin treatment is because I don't think Filles... has even remotely the same magnetic resonance and genre-defining sound as In a Silent Way, whereas one could argue both Zeppelin records are herculean works that helped construct the sound of hard rock.

 

[Chili]

Beatles-Abbey Road
Led Zeppelin I & II
Neil Young & Crazy Horse-Everybody Knows This is Nowhere
Stones-Let it Bleed
Crosby Stills and Nash-Crosby Stills and Nash
CCR-Willie & The Poor Boys

Added:

Jethro Tull-Stand Up
Steppenwolf-Monster

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

Fair question.

Other question. Yellow Submarine? I don't think it stood a chance against Abbey Road, but could have ended up second.

 

[kihei]

Neil Young: Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Miles Davis: In a Silent Way
Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin II
Rolling Stones: Let It Bleed
The Who: Tommy
The Band: The Band
The Velvet Underground: The Velvet Underground
The Beatles: Abbey Road
Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin I
Sly and the Family Stone: Sly and the Family Stone

 

[Spring in Fialta]

Voted Hot Rats, Trout Mask Replica, The Velvet Underground but I'm not familiar with most albums in all polls...my music knowledge is often lacking, moreso than films and literature, and I'm a geeky dilettante at the other two as well...still, The Velvet Underground's self-titled album is flawless. Serious beauty in that one.

 

[plank]

1. Abbey Road - The Beatles
2. s/t - The Band
3. II - Led Zeppelin
4. Willy and the Poor Boys - CCR
5. Tommy - The Who
6. s/t - Townes Van Zandt
7. Let It Bleed - The Rolling Stones
8. On the Threshold of a Dream - The Moody Blues
9. Everybody Knows This is Everywhere - Neil Young
10. s/t - Crosby, Stills and Nash
11. s/t - Chicago Transit Authority

 

[VC]

Music that I grew up with from my dad's mass vinyl collection. Only album I know front to back is Abbey Road which is amazing of course, saw McCartney this past year.

So many legendary albums here that I haven't given a full listen to, thats on me.

 

[Saturated Fats]

Other question. Yellow Submarine? I don't think it stood a chance against Abbey Road, but could have ended up second.

Brother, I'm gonna be straight up with you and say that I completely forgot to include it.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

Brother, I'm gonna be straight up with you and say that I completely forgot to include it.

Looks like I'm the only one who thinks its worth anything anyway.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

my music knowledge is often lacking

Same here. I listen to a lot of stuff, but I'm dumb as a rock when it comes to music theory - it's all feels. I'm just happy when some of my picks end up in the poll (easier for the older years), or when I know/like some of everybody's choices (and even more happy when I discover interesting stuff I didn't know).

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

it wont win, but its Sly and the Family Stone

 

[frisco]

Other:
Touching You, Touching Me-Neil Diamond
Rhymes And Reasons-John Denver
At San Quentin-Johnny Cash
The Soft Parade-The Doors

My Best-Carey

 

[Saturated Fats]

I'm a little surprised at the comparatively minimal love for In the Court of the Crimson King. Maybe it's a separation between 'music nerds' and the listening public, but I've always seen it as one of the most celebrated albums of all time. Certainly it's one of the most influential. Does it just not register with some people?